Tops and similar spinning toys have been known for centuries. Many such tops were designed to be spun without the use of strings, cords, rope, etc. (see, for instance, U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,139,119; 1,319,123; 1,262,061 and 2,332,507). These tops typically employed a stem adapted to be gripped between the thumb and finger of a user and then twisted rapidly so as to impart a spinning motion to the top as it was released by the user onto a preferably smooth support surface, which would be contacted by the body of the top or by the tip of a spindle extending from the top's body in an opposite direction from the stem.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,807,470 discloses a game which comprises playing pieces adapted to be positioned on a suitable playing surface. Each game piece includes an elongated pin or post having one end which is adapted for insertion into a selected one of a plurality of apertures formed in the playing surface. The opposite end of each pin or post is adapted to receive a disc-like member which can be spun by a player upon the opposite end of a corresponding pin or post. The object of the game is to place and retain on the playing surface as many game pieces as possible with the disc-like members thereon all spinning simultaneously.